The world of Sports, is not reality to most of us in the outside world. To the athletes, however, the emotion, and all that goes with their sports, is very real to them. The post season, or playoffs, brings a genuine feeling of being on a roller coaster ride of emotions. Win or lose, the ups and downs, crazy finishes, that come with playoff action, matter only to those involved, but make no mistake about it, it matters. Winning or losing a playoff match or series, does not equate to acing or failing an exam. The final score, or final results of a series, have no influence on whether someone lives, or dies. The most common comparison by athletes in the playoffs, is to a battle in a war. Again, this is not to say playing a sporting game, is equal to fighting in a war, but there are comparable aspects of each. There is a feeling of honour, tradition, loyalty, and a never quit mentality, that both war and sports share. Strapping on the same uniform, going out together and having each other’s backs, no matter the situation, could easily describe the sense of pride and comradery in war, or a battle on the playing field. The Western Mustangs Men’s Basketball team, went to war on the hardwood, against the Windsor Lancers on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Hall. Unfortunately for the Mustangs, and their faithful who crammed the stands to cheer them on, the Lancers won the war, 89-72. Western put up a strong fight, but in the end, someone had to lose.
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The Mustangs had a game plan, and executed it well in the opening 10 minutes of play. As leaders in the OUA in steals, averaging a shade under 12 per game, Western had their hands in Windsor’s cookie jar for the whole quarter. The Lancers turned over the ball several times, giving the home side fast break opportunities. The defensive attack needed to be extra intense in this game. Western was minus injured guard Nikola Farkic, who is served as the catalyst of the defense, and was ranked 2nd in the OUA in steals during the regular season. Farkic also assisted on the 2nd most baskets in the OUA, something that would be sorely missed in this game. Guard Omar Shiddo of the Mustangs, tried to lift the team on his shoulders, in Farkic’s absence. Shiddo injected himself into the game on offense, trying to help build a lead that would result in a 21-16 1st quarter score in favour of Western. Windsor guard Mike Rocca, who usually has his best outings versus the Mustangs, had no points in the 1st quarter. Defense by committee, is how Western played the 5th year guard from Sarnia Ontario. Everytime Rocca and his 18 points per game hands touched the rock, he was surrounded by at least 2 defenders, forcing the ball out of his hands.
In the 2nd quarter, the Mustangs defense began to lapse, and Rocca punished them for it. Rocca was left open at times, and he knocked down the shots, whether it be from inside or outside of the 3 point arc. Western was not hitting their shots anymore either. The Mustangs offense, which was generated mostly from their aggressive defense, was virtually non existent in the 2nd quarter. The Lancers outscored Western 22-8, and headed into the locker room leading 38-29 at halftime. Rocca ended the quarter with 8 points, after being held scoreless in the 1st. The Mustangs defense needed to get back to what made them successful to start the game, and that was activity. Gone were the active hands, diving for loose balls, double and triple teams. They were replaced with whining, complaining, and hands on the knees pulling at the shorts, suggesting fatigue.
Western guard Marko Kovac, who finished with 14 points, did most of his damage in the 3rd quarter, helping bring his team to within single digits of Windsor. Once again, the energy from the 1st quarter, showed up as the Mustangs guards got out and ran on the fast break, forcing deflections, blocking shots, and skying for rebounds that normally would be out of reach. With all of their effort to comeback, and Omar Shiddo’s 2 tightly contested 3’s late in the quarter, it was a 3 by the visitors to beat the 3rd quarter buzzer, that seemed to cap off the afternoon for the Lancers. Though the lead heading into the 4th quarter was only 66-61 for Windsor, a nervous feeling was in the air at Alumni Hall. Western still had no answer for the now blazing hot Mike Rocca. Rocca was not only a thorn in the sides of the Mustangs on offense, but his defensive intensity, and trash talking, seemed to have an effect, as often is the case when he gets going. There is a special something in the tank when playing against Western, a fact that Rocca admitted in an interview post game, when he was named the Radio Western Player of the Game.
The wind appeared to run out of the collective sails of the Mustangs in the 4th quarter. The Lancers used their deft outside shooting and defense to ignite the pace of the game, which had been slowed down to Western’s pace when it was close. By now, wild and scrambled closeouts to an open Rocca, led to solid ball movement around the perimeter for Windsor, enabling others to get involved, securing the 89-72 victory. Mustangs’ guard Omar Shiddo tried to will his boys to victory single handedly by dropping 29 points on the Lancers. Other than modest contributions from guards Marko Kovac with his 14 points, and Eriq Jenkins’ 13 points, it was a disappointing effort from Western in the game. Key players and starters, particularly those in their final game as a Mustang, looked uninspired, and tired in the loss.
Windsor moves onto the semi-finals of the OUA on Wednesday, while the season is over for Western. Seniors Henry Tan, Cam Morris, and Jedson Tavernier, have played their last game ever for the purple and white, something not lost on the players, although Tavernier is only in his 4th year, and hinted at a possible return to the court. Each Senior player when asked about their future life after Mustangs’ basketball, had a different goal to aspire to, but one thing was common about their thoughts postgame, the future is looking bright for the Western Mustangs’ Men’s Basketball program.
